New Promised Lands

Among the truly wonderful things about the Promise movement is its never-ending array of spinoffs. Cities of Promise has been focused on places where high school students from a specific region are granted college affordability, but there are other interesting college-based programs which aren’t tied to geographic economic development.

Two examples of this are the APSU Promise in Clarksville, Tenn., and the Miami Promise in Oxford, Ohio.

The Austin Peay State University Promise began this fall, guaranteeing scholarships to all Tennessee Board of Regents community college and Hopkinsville (Ky.) Community College graduates who have at least a 3.0 cumulative grade-point average. Interestingly, starting next year in-state students attending Tennessee community colleges could benefit from the state-wide Tennessee Promise while students in Hopkinsville have been working toward their own Rotary Scholars Promise for several years.

Community college graduates with a 3.0-3.24 cumulative GPA will receive a $1,500 per year award to APSU. Graduates with a 3.25-3.49 cumulative GPA will receive a $2,000 per year scholarship, and graduates with a 3.5-3.74 cumulative GPA will receive a $3,000 scholarship. Individuals with a 3.75 cumulative GPA or higher will be awarded $4,000 per year to attend APSU.

The Miami Promise is a bit different. In the past, Miami University — the most challenging of Ohio’s public universities — has struggled to attract and sufficiently support first-generation, low-income and minority students. As a result, there has been a gap between the demographic makeup of the student body and the state’s population. So the University has turned to its alumni to bridge that gap with the five-year, $100-million Miami Promise campaign.

“By raising $100 million in new scholarship support, the Miami Promise Scholarship Campaign will demonstrate our commitment to affordable excellence and ensure a Miami education remains within reach of bright, hardworking students and their families,” said University President David Hodge.

It is hard to categorize all the different Promises which are being made, but — as long as they are all kept — students stand to be the big winners.